Presently, in order to access a personal computer from a remote location, the computer must be operating and actively connected to a network, such as the Internet. Similarly, if a computer application is to be available remotely, the computer must remain powered on and the application operating in standby until called for, even if the application is used infrequently. Also, if a computer data file is to be remotely accessed, the computer must remain powered on and a remote file access program left running. For infrequently used applications or data files this represents an inefficient use of computer resources, and unnecessary network utilization.